#larcine

Renewed resolve would be the foundation of those flame lit eyes during their latest departure. Thanks to the course of these passing days, difficult weight was thrown off, only to be replaced with the respectful harness of responsibility as it was now a party of three that studied the anomaly. A bright blue sky found itself being rippled with series scarlet light, the fabric of space and time being warped as they found themselves being transferred into the realm of Mementos. What accompanied the rowdiest of the phantom thieves was a strange burst of preparedness.

Too much time has been spent skirting around for his liking. It was underneath the grandeur of the showlights and this presence of danger that his soul truly kicked the rust away. A familiar strength could be felt burning bright inside of him, in fact, even more prevalent then ever before as another trip was about to be taken with the Niijima sisters. Maybe it was seeing hints of a positive change in their relationship that struck this good mood.

Since that reflective image of them during more trying times just couldn’t leave his head.

“N’ here’s our stop. The big bad palace.”

Fresh within his veins could that life blood be felt heating up, more than set to meet the challenges ahead. More importantly, to uncover the truth that lied within.  While being on route for the treasure, Skull had taken the liberty of adding a pinch more onto the task of their mission agenda. Disabling the security measures from within the palace (outside of the guards themselves) played a big key in today’s goal. ..If his thoughts were right after all.

Then the treasure they were truly after may be entirely different. A firm glance was tossed over to the Queen of the Phantom Thieves, the blond’s face showed resolution.

“Ya all set for this? Figure this lil line of planning would be right up your alley, that wya we wouldn’t have too much of a party  tryin’ keep us occupied.“

Sleight of hand. It was a trick well known by gambler that had the guts to seize victory by any means necessary. A lesser card is swapped for one that will turn the tide of the game completely. The satisfaction of winning is second only to that granted by successfully pulling off such a strategy. And oh, had she pulled it off to a brilliant degree. 

The Thieves intruded upon her world once more, but the proximity of their entry had drawn in another. Her other self. It sparked an idea within the gambler, one which she knew she had a limited time to carry out. Her guard was informed in an instant that they were to treat this woman’s safety as their highest priority, but in addition, she was not to get any ideas about leaving. From there it was simple for someone who knew every inch of the world she was about to leave behind. Wait for the Thieves to make their exit and follow suit. 

Yellow eyes flicked over her shoulder as she took in her first glance of the courthouse in its proper state. Nowhere near as grand as her Casino, but it mattered not. Her prided establishment would continue to strive so long as she ensured that Sae Niijima would always do whatever it takes to achieve victory. 

Everything else, she found, was the same. The route home, even the key that allowed her entry into the Niijima apartment. It’d take no time at all to grow acclimated to reality. Though, there was one small contingency she’d need to smooth over before things could truly be considered definite.

  Days drift on and on into weeks. Since the Phantom Thieves had their boost in popularity, Akechi had become a sort of pariah. He knows that their fame will come crashing down. He knows that at the end of things, he will stand above them. Soon, he’ll be a hero and they’ll be nobodies. Just like they were before they got their Personas. Things will go back to the way they were. When he was the only one with such power. 

  And despite the knowledge that this was a temporary state of things, he still felt frustrated. Seeing people online insult him only made him angry. An anger that he carefully hides behind a mask. 

  And now he was putting that mask on as tightly as possible. He had to meet with Sae’s younger sister. A phantom thief, though she thinks it’s well hidden. Not everyone is as good at hiding as he is. She’s likely not expecting him. In fact, he hates the fact that Sae asked a personal favor of him anyway. But he’d be a good little teenager and do it with a smile. 

  So he waits for her outside of school, knowing she would likely be leaving soon. And as soon as he sees her, he smiles. 

Summer had been a busy time, despite having the entire month of August off from school. They had been running around the Metaverse from the end of July until the end of August to make sure everyone was getting stronger as they worked through Futaba’s Palace with all its traps and tricks. It was shortly after Futaba’s change of heart that Akira first noticed something was different about Makoto but he couldn’t quite place his finger on it.

Still, despite knowing something had to be bothering Makoto he kept the thought to himself. He figured that if she was truly in trouble that she’d come talk to him. But, he was still worried about his friend and teammate. He had noticed it first, right around the trip to the beach with Futaba and the others.

As the days grew shorter though, and school was back in session Akira couldn’t keep his concern to himself any longer and made his way to the student council room after the school day ended so he could catch Makoto. “May I have a moment?” He inquired, brows knit together as he regarded Makoto carefully. “I’d like to speak somewhere privately.”

<-🎧-> “OOooooh, are we chasing Skull and Mona? Let me in on this! Let’s go, Necronomicon!”

“..!”

An inaudible noise escaped her lips. She knew he had worried about her. Everyone seemed to. But she didn’t know what she was supposed to do with that. She couldn’t just handle that. People worrying for her. No. There were more important matters than this, than her.

She winced, recoiling a bit. She hadn’t expected to be yelled at. And even though he had nothing to do with her sister, unwanted memories stirred. Makoto wrapped her arms around herself. Her mental wall was shattering. She couldn’t handle this. She was fine. She had to be fine. Always fine!

But she was falling too fast, too hard.

“S-Sorry…”

•••   There were moments in life where weakness had to be shown, it wasn’t a sin nor a crime.  It was inevitable, it made part of being a human being after all.  In silence, he remained observant, keen to notice how a shout made her hard surface crack --- delicate.  Our protagonist never took a moment to believe it was harsh treatment, in fact, if his voice hadn’t elevated then she wouldn’t permit him to help her. As they stood just outside the school gates far past studying hours, he stepped forth and embrace her momentarily.

she crouched, even if not entirely, to the ground. and by doing so, resulted in also breaking eye contact with the brown-haired girl. Mitsuru’s dark hues met the asphalt first, unexpectedly cleaner than what she had expected, then the grey of pure steel. a fine piece of machinery. a nice vehicle, if she could say so herself. although not a real expert in said subject, it was comprehensible by a mere look; all she could hope, deep inside her heart, was that such a fact was not only for show, as people did say. the matter did only get even more true and right than ever when there was a girl riding the motorcycle. a rare vision, but definitely not as rare and odd as it might have been years before the present.

                 «  It’s obvious you care for it so very much. I can tell that, by a single                  look alone at it -- I must say it’s impressive.  »

it brought her back. she too did find pleasure in taking care of her bike, examining its various components and even arriving to, in secret, disassembling its engine. the still odd and particular mechanism that allowed it to operate during the Dark Hour. how could she have forgotten ? -- that had been the banner, the symbol of her desire to break free. a privilege and permission both given by her father, back in the day, as a form of utter trust. melancholic but ever so bittersweet in taste to almost resulting intoxicating right now. it was a while since she had driven her motorcycle.